Water has been restored to large sections of North Devon after a large dairy farm reported “animal welfare concerns” and a number of villages were left without running water in the aftermath of the recent bad weather.

Running water has been restored to villagers in Bradworthy, Woolsery and Hartland after South West Water identified the “key leak” which has left hundreds of homes high and dry since Friday.

A dairy farm on the border of North Devon and Mid-Devon, at Gidley Cross, near Witheridge, was left without running water all weekend prompting animal welfare concerns.

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According to South West Water teams have been working “around the clock for the last 72 hours”. Customer services manager Jo Ecroyd told DevonLive.com yesterday: “Our teams based in North Devon will be tackling this repair work throughout the night tonight (Sunday, March 4) to restore the water supply.

“Customers will start to see the water supply returning from the early hours of Monday (5 March) and the supply will continue to be restored to affected areas throughout the day.

“We advise parents to check with schools locally tomorrow to establish if their schools have had their water supplies restored, enabling them to open.”

DevonLive.com can confirm the majority of properties in Hartland, Bradworthy and Woolsery have had their water supply restored and primary schools in Woolsery and Bradworthy have reopened today but Hartland Primary School has not.

Bradworthy in North Devon

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The chairman of Bradworthy Parish Council, Richard Boughton, spoke to DevonLive.com this morning, he said: “The water went off on Friday at around 12pm, a low pressure supply came through but we lost it again on Saturday but it was fully restored this morning.

“People here do understand the situation with the bad weather but were frustrated by the lack of communication from South West Water.

“There was a team from South West Water in the village yesterday but it would have been good to have someone here on Saturday.”

Alternative water supplies were provided at locations in Bradworthy, Kilkhampton, Woolfardisworthy and Hartland during the interruption to supply.

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Woolsery parish councillor Alastair Ashworth said: “I think South West Water has done as well as could be expected under the circumstances.

“We do not really know what the problem was but I don’t suppose we need to.

“South West Water gave out bottles of water in the village so I don’t believe anyone went without.”

Hartland district and parish councillor Anna Dart would like to see South West Water be more proactive in the future, she said: “Hartland Primary School is still closed today and I believe running water has been restored to the village but some outlying properties are still without.

“Potted water was given out to locals by a number of local groups as well as South West Water and I think it’s fair to say we’ve had an immense response from the community.

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“Obviously it would have been preferable not to have had this problem, especially as we pay some the highest water bills in the UK.

“We need South West Water to be more forward thinking and more proactive. Also if they would like to offer those affected compensation I’m sure people would appreciate that.”

A spokesman for South West Water said: “South West Water staff have been working around the clock since last week, sometimes in very difficult conditions, to maintain essential services to customers.

“We have been working to find and fix a large number of burst water mains, caused by the cold weather and subsequent thaw, across the region. Repairs are being prioritised according to the number of customers affected, the potential amount of water lost and whether a burst is a danger to public safety.

“Our focus has to be on our customers, in particular hospitals, care homes and other vulnerable groups.

“Defra’s advice is that farmers should develop contingency plans to get water to all stock in the event that water is turned off.

“Retailers are working with business customers, including the farming community, to mitigate the impact as much as possible.”

If you need to report a burst main or leaking pipe outside your home, please call South West Water on 0344 346 2020. If you have leaking water or frozen and burst pipes inside your property please call a local plumber.